The Prince of Frogtown

Publisher's Summary

In this final volume of the beloved American saga that began with All Over but the Shoutin' and continued with Ava's Man, Rick Bragg closes his circle of family stories with an unforgettable tale about fathers and sons inspired by his own relationship with his 10-year-old stepson.He learns, right from the start, that a man who chases a woman with a child is like a dog who chases a car and wins. He discovers that he is unsuited to fatherhood, unsuited to fathering this boy in particular, a boy who does not know how to throw a punch and doesn't need to; a boy accustomed to love and affection rather than violence and neglect; in short, a boy wholly unlike the child Rick once was, and who longs for a relationship with Rick that Rick hasn't the first inkling of how to embark on. With the weight of this new boy tugging at his clothes, Rick sets out to understand his father, his son, and himself.The Prince of Frogtown documents a mesmerizing journey back in time to the lush Alabama landscape of Rick's youth, to Jacksonville's 100-year-old mill, the town's blight and salvation; and to a troubled, charismatic hustler coming of age in its shadow, Rick's father, a man bound to bring harm even to those he truly loves. And the book documents the unexpected corollary to it, the marvelous journey of Rick's later life: a journey into fatherhood, and toward a child for whom he comes to feel a devotion that staggers him.With candor, insight, tremendous humor, and the remarkable gift for descriptive storytelling on which he made his name, Rick Bragg delivers a brilliant and moving rumination on the lives of boys and men, a poignant reflection on what it means to be a father and a son.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful

one of my very favorite authors

Rick Bragg grabs my heart and he won't let go. I am truly in love with his writing. He makes me cry, a lot, and there is the humor, all those messy emotions mushed together. Oh and the grace of his southern storytelling,in his voice.... and man, I can't get enough.
I am a southern momma; Mr Bragg knows and embraces our souls, us fragile and oh so strong mommas.
Another book please sir, soon?

Pulitzer Prize winning author Rick Bragg is a wizard with words. The Prince of Frogtown is one of several books he wrote about his family and life growing up dirt poor in the rural south in the 50's and 60's. Author narrated, I was mesmerized by his voice. The slow southern drawl and apt description of life in a mill town was hypnotic. Totally creditworthy.